FIFA World Cup 2026 Scorecard

Shortcode-based WordPress scorecard widget for FIFA World Cup 2026 matches.

Features

• Server-side API calls only via wp_remote_get()
• ESPN primary source, with worldcupjson and football-data fallbacks
• football-data API token kept server-side only
• WordPress transient caching with shorter TTL for live matches
• Live-to-upcoming fallback when no match is currently live
• Adaptive frontend refresh based on match state and next kickoff
• REST endpoint for refreshed normalized data
• Responsive compact score strip for news homepage placement
• Admin settings page under Settings > FIFA WC Scorecard

Shortcode

[fifa_wc_scorecard]
[fifa_wc_scorecard status="live" limit="4"]
[fifa_wc_scorecard status="upcoming" limit="8" show_venue="no"]
[fifa_wc_scorecard team="Brazil"]
[fifa_wc_scorecard source="espn" compact="yes"]

Recommended homepage usage:

[fifa_wc_scorecard status="live" limit="1" compact="yes" show_venue="no" refresh_seconds="30"]

Attributes

REST Endpoint

/wp-json/fifa-wc-scorecard/v1/matches

Accepted filters:

• source
• limit
• status
• team

The endpoint returns normalized cached match data and rendered HTML for frontend refreshes.

Installation

1. Download the latest release ZIP.
2. Upload it through WordPress Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin.
3. Activate the plugin.
4. Configure optional settings under Settings > FIFA WC Scorecard.
5. Add the shortcode to a post, page, sidebar block, Elementor shortcode widget, or Gutenberg shortcode block.

Settings

• Football-data API token
• Default source
• Cache TTL for live matches
• Cache TTL for non-live matches
• Enable or disable frontend auto refresh

Security

• External API calls are server-side only.
• football-data token is stored in wp_options and sent only in the server-side X-Auth-Token header.
• REST output and frontend JavaScript never expose the token.
• Output is escaped and settings/shortcode inputs are sanitized.
• Plugin REST CORS is restricted to the WordPress site origin.

Author

Rayhan Sardar
https://github.com/RayhanSysMin

License

GPL-2.0-or-later

Changelog

1.0.7

• Added absolute next-refresh timestamps so cached pages refresh immediately after scheduled kickoff time.
• Reduced stale upcoming states by using live cache timing when a scheduled match kickoff has recently passed.

1.0.6

• Fixed ESPN upcoming fixtures by querying a rolling date window instead of only the default scoreboard day.
• Added plugin-version cache busting so older source transients cannot keep stale empty states after updates.

1.0.5

• Added live-to-upcoming fallback so live scorecards show upcoming fixtures instead of an empty state when no match is live.
• Added adaptive frontend refresh timing based on the next scheduled kickoff.
• Extended non-live cache timing toward the next known scheduled match to reduce API calls.
• Added same-origin CORS handling for the plugin REST endpoint.
• Confirmed match times render using the WordPress site timezone.

1.0.4

• Improved compact match spacing by aligning teams and score in a balanced three-column layout.
• Reduced compact LIVE badge size and spacing so it reads as a small news label instead of a button.

1.0.3

• Improved mobile compact layout with time and status on the first row and teams plus score below.
• Reduced mobile flag, text, score, and vertical spacing for cleaner homepage placement.

1.0.2

• Added Nimble Builder compatibility styles for shortcode output wrapped in pre/code markup.
• Reduced builder section padding around compact scorecards.

1.0.1

• Added newspaper-style compact score strip design for placement below the main menu.
• Removed heavy shadows and rounded-card styling from compact mode.
• Added thin red accent rule to better match The New Nation Bangla site design.
• Hid source attribution in compact mode for a cleaner homepage presentation.

1.0.0

• Initial release.